Government's Indigenous Education Paper Must Be Backed Up By More Than Just Words.
Tuesday August 6 2002
The NTEU welcomes the decision by the Education Minister Brendan Nelson to address Indigenous education as part of the Governments’ review of higher education, in a paper released today.
But to have any real impact in terms of increasing Indigenous people and their communities’ participation in and ownership of Australia’s higher education system, the NTEU believes it is essential for the Government to adopt a new policy approach that addresses Indigenous participation and employment, backed up by the necessary funds to make this happen.
“The NTEU has encouraged the Government to a produce a paper with the objective of highlighting the status of Indigenous education and employment in higher education,” said Dr Carolyn Allport, NTEU President. “While the NTEU does not endorse the Government’s paper we believe that it can be a useful basis for further debate and discussion.”
“We agree with the paper that the higher education system has clearly failed to meet the diverse needs of Indigenous people, including failing to support their traditional approaches to learning.”
“As part of this, we welcome the recognition given in the paper that the scarcity of indigenous supervisors impedes Indigenous research at our universities, and agree with the suggestion that Indigenous people from community be given an expanded role in this area.”
“Two other crucial policy shifts are needed if the Government is to turn its rhetoric on improving Indigenous participation and ownership in higher education into reality,” said Dr Allport. “Firstly, there needs to be a recognition that universities need to change their educational and workplace cultures so that they are welcoming and supporting of indigenous staff and students.”
“Secondly, the effects of drastic cuts in programs and funding that have taken place over the last few years, especially in Abstudy and support funding, need to be addressed.”
“These cuts have had a devastating impact on Indigenous enrolment figures. It is not nearly enough, as the paper infers, that this situation would be improved by higher education institutions better informing Indigenous students of the educational financial assistance already on offer.”
“As part of this, Indigenous units within universities need the resources to integrate Indigenous communities and their knowledge into their educational programs.”
“At the moment, we have three times as many Indigenous people in our jails as we have in the higher education system. Reversing the sorry state of affairs is not just an Indigenous issue but an important social justice issue for all Australians. We look forward to working with the Education Minister to move this important matter forward.”
For Information and Comment
Dr Carolyn Allport,
NTEU President: Mob 0417 033 826
Tracey Bunda,
NTEU National Executive: Mob 0411 405 005